


Seasons Change

by victors_mockingjays



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Epilogue, F/M, Implied Sexual Content, Post-Mockingjay, Pre-Epilogue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-07
Updated: 2016-05-07
Packaged: 2018-06-06 23:09:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6774034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/victors_mockingjays/pseuds/victors_mockingjays
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Katniss and Peeta have had many defining moments of their life, but what are the defining moments of them growing back together. Katniss and Peeta remember those moments after 15 years.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Seasons Change

Spring

 

District 12 had started bustling with people. Many people that left because of the fire bombing surprisingly came back. But many people couldn’t have been too surprised.

District 12 was in fact their home. The place that they loved.

After Peeta arrived to District 12, he immediately went to the woods. He had heard of the loss of Katniss’ sister. The one person he was sure that Katniss knew she loved.

Peeta went searching for primroses and he knew where to search thanks to the plant book that he and Katniss had worked on.

When Peeta finally found them he hoped that Katniss would be happy about them. He hadn’t known what state she was in after so much tragedy and devastation. He started his trek back to the Victor’s Village.

Peeta planted primroses in front of Katniss’ house on the first day of spring. Katniss still remembered it as one of the best days after the war. Seeing Peeta again after those long, hard months where all he wanted to do was kill her.

“You came home,” Katniss said in a whisper.

Peeta nodded his head. “Yeah.”

He was shocked when Katniss came to him and wrapped her arms around him. Peeta wrapped his arms around her and Katniss let out a sigh of relief. His arms were just as steady as they were before his hijacking.

Katniss invited Peeta in and the two had breakfast. Both of them made sure to never venture too far into a topic. Neither of them knew what would push the other over the edge.

Before Katniss bid Peeta goodbye that day, she stopped him.

“Wait. Peeta. Where are you going to stay? Your house is…” she raised her eyebrow and Peeta understood her.

“I told Haymitch I was back. He knew I was coming today. Told me I could stay with him.”

Katniss grimaced and looked kind of disgusted.

“You really want to do that? Stay with a drunk that never keeps anything clean?”

Peeta shook his head, but as he thought more and more about the situation, he began to think that staying with Haymitch may not be the best thing for him.

“You should stay here,” Katniss said softly.

“Are you sure? I’m not 100% safe yet. I feel better with my memories, but I don’t know everything that will set me off.:

Katniss gave him a smile. The first smile on her face since after the war.

She assured him that it would be alright. “Then we’ll figure it out. Together.”

Peeta smiled at her. One of those smiles that couldn’t stop Katniss from feeling joy spread through her body.

“Together.”

Their days throughout the spring consisted of routines that kept them sane. Dr. Aurelius recommended this until they were comfortable with doing other things. Their routines were pretty much the same everyday.

Wake up. Eat breakfast together. Peeta would go off to work on construction, and Katniss would hunt. They would meet each other back at home then make dinner together.

Making dinner together was more of Katniss watching Peeta make everything. He was definitely a better cock than her, but Katniss could make a mean stew.

“Are you just going to watch my hands?” Peeta said teasingly.

Katniss felt a blush creep on her face, but she still smiled. “Maybe. Do you mind it?”

He chuckled and shrugged. “Not at all.”

They both laughed. Laughter was becoming a more frequent thing as the weeks and eventually months started going by. Katniss thought that Peeta’s laughter was a gift to the world, but Peeta also felt the same about her’s.

Whenever Katniss laughed, he couldn’t think about anything else other than how beautiful of a sight it was to see. Anytime it happened, Peeta made sure to savor it.

Happy 18th Birthday

Katniss looked down at the cursive handwriting on top of the cake that could only be Peeta’s.

Peeta worked all night on a cake for Katniss’ birthday. He was sure that Katniss could’ve forgotten her birthday entirely, and he was right.

As Katniss thought about the date, she realized that it was in fact May 8th.

“You…you. You made me a cake?” Katniss asked in complete shock.

He nodded and was shaking from nervousness. He wasn’t sure if she would like it or not.

“I’ve always wanted a cake. When…we…would walk by the bakery together, we always looked at the cake. We were fascinated by the designs. I was hoping to get one one day.”

Peers understood what she was saying. Katniss till couldn’t say Prim’s name, so he made sure to never say it, fearing what would happen if he did.

“I made one for you. I remember you telling me how you would look at the cakes in the bakery window, so I made you one,” he said in a shaky voice.

Peeta wanted to make sure that it was perfect. Katniss smiled at him and wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed him tightly.

“Thank you, Peeta. It’s the best gift I’ve ever received.”

Peeta smiled and hugged her back with just as much strength.

“Anything for you, Katniss. Anything.”

She pulled back and smiled at him. While they stared in each other’s eyes, they were both thinking the same thing.

Katniss let her fingers over Peeta’s jaw, and he closed his eyes. She leaned up and gently pressed her lips up to his.

It was the first time they had kissed since the Capitol. The kiss was sweet and gentle, but it had much effect on both of them. When Katniss pulled back she opened her eyes.

“Thank you for giving me the best birthday ever,” she whispered softly.

Peeta nodded and stroked her hair.

“You’re welcome. I would do anything for you, you know?”

Katniss gave him a soft smile and Peeta tried to recognize the look in her eyes.

“I know you do. The same goes for you.”

 

Summer

 

The day’s became hotter…and not only the days

As summer rolled around District 12 became hot. It was one of the hottest months Katniss and Peeta had experienced. It felt like the quell to them, but none of them had mentioned that.

Both of them started weening off of their routines. They didn’t need them.

They had each other.

Peeta’s ears rang as be heard Katniss’ screams coming from her bedroom. He sprinted down the hall to her room and climbed into bed with her. When she realized whose arms where around her she opened her eyes.

“Peeta.”

“Yes?”

“Stay with me.” Katniss’ voice sounded eager and Peeta replied in the only way he could.

“Always.”

Katniss knew that she had to allow Peeta in her bed every night after that. It helped her sleep when she couldn’t. Having Peeta’s arms around her was her cure to nightmares.

The hotter the summer got, the more Katniss and Peeta noticed their feelings for each other. It was too hot to have so many clothes on, so Peeta had taken to wearing only shorts to bed.

When Peeta walked in the room shirtless Katniss felt a blush appear on her face. She put a hand up to her face and felt the amount of heat radiating off.

She also felt heat building somewhere else.

Peeta assured that it was only because he was hot, but Katniss felt a little disappointed that his reason was the only reason his clothes would be coming off.

As soon as they laid down for bed, Katniss wasted no time in running her hands down Peeta’s broad chest.

Construction work had made Peeta’s body more toned and muscular. Anytime Katniss ran her finger over his chest or arm, he would suck a breath in.

“I’ll have to take a cold shower if you keep doing that,” Peeta said in a strained voice.

Katniss knew that Peeta thought she was pure, but she wasn’t stupid.

“Oh don’t mind me…I’m just enjoying the view,” she said teasingly.

Peeta shook his head and they both fell asleep wrapped in each other’s arms.

August 13th. Victor’s Day.

The day was made in memory of all the victors. Katniss wondered why they would try to make something in memory of people that were winners of the game instead of all the victims.

Commander Paylor was doing a great job with running the country. The peace was kept up, most people had enough food to stay alive, and the peacekeepers were actually being peace makers.

But this was a dumb idea.

Katniss was infuriated about the idea. They should’ve been remembering all the loses that occurred for them to have the peaceful life they have now.

She stayed curled up in bed all day. She couldn’t find the strength to move. All the memories became to much. Peeta was optimistic though. He helped her in anyway he could all day.

As he laid next to her with his arms wrapped around her body, he could feel Katniss’ body trembling and a few drops of tears on his arm.

“They didn’t even have the d-decency to remember those we lost! It’s like P-prim died for nothing now!!!” she said in between sobs.

Peeta rubbed her back and held her as she let her tears out.

“But we know Katniss. Let’s do our own memory. We can honor all of the ones that died. Maybe some type of book.”

Katniss looked up at him with glassy eyes. She sniffles a few times and gripped onto Peeta’s shirt.

“Would you help me? I won’t be able to do this alone,” Peeta said softly.

Katniss nodded her head and grabbed his hand.

“I’ll help you. We’ll do it together like we’ve done everything else,” Katniss said with a small smile.

“We’ll start tomorrow then.”

Katniss and Peeta had never worked so hard on something. They added all of the tributes that they could think of. Katniss remembered the list of names that Peeta called out in the Capitol.

Glimmer. Marvel. Mags. Clove. Wiress. Rue. Cinna. Boggs. Castor. Jackson. Finnick.

Katniss recalled the things about every tribute. What they looked like, their personality, and anything she could think of.

She knew that they weren’t really monsters. They were made to be that way.

Just like Peeta.

Peeta was changed to be something that he wasn’t, just like the careers. 

Katniss watched as Peeta’s cursive writing ran over the lapsed. It was soothing to her. Watching the ink run over the smooth paper.

As Katniss told him anything she could remember about their faces, Peeta’s paint brush ran over the paper. It was easy remembering their faces. They invaded her nightmares so often.

It took about a month to finish the book, but Prim’s page was the hardest.

In between many tears Katniss was able to recall every thing and every detail about her sister. Her little duck.

When Peeta finished drawing her so perfectly, that’s when she let the most tears go.

It was perfect. Her blue eyes. The single braid she wore like Katniss. Her soft face and eyes.

Peeta held her as she cried, but eventually they were able to finish their book. The project that they knew were needed.

“I think this helped so much. I think I may…may be able to accept it a little more. I miss her so much!” Katniss said as sobs took over her body.

Peeta hugged her closely. She buried her face in his neck and wrapped her arms around his torso.

“I know you miss her, but I know wherever she is, she would happy that you’re trying to remember the ones we lost,” he said softly.

He looked down at her and strokes her hair.

“You’ve done so much Katniss. We have. Together. This is another chapter of our lives that I think we can close now. We should stop thinking about the past, and now look to the future.”

Katniss nodded and looked up into his eyes.

“You’re right. Thank you for doing this with me. I couldn’t have done it alone,” she said genuinely.

“Thank you, for allowing me to help you.”

Katniss smiled trough her tears and hugged him.

“I would never deny you.”

Both of them could her the double meaning in her words.

 

Fall

 

Other than spring, this was Katniss’ favorite time to hunt. The air was cool and crisp. A perfect fall day. Peeta knew that Katniss would take advantage of the weather, so it shocked him when she asked him to come along.

“You want me to come hunting with you?” he asked in shock.

Katniss let out a laugh. “Of course not. You would scare all the game away!”

They both let out a laugh but Peeta was a little disappointed that she didn’t want him with her.

“I want you to come to the lake with me. Maybe we could finish those swimming lessons we attempted earlier in the year.”

A wide spread crossed Peeta’s face, and it was contagious. Katniss couldn’t help but smiling back.

Peeta grabbed her hand and stared into the eyes he thought were Mercury.

“I would love to.”

Katniss leaned up and pressed her lips to his softly. He smirks against her lips and ran his fingers through her hair.

All of their kisses were like this. Lips to lips, no extra moments, but they were starting to need more. For the beginning of the year it was all they needed, but the hunger for more was hard to keep at bay for both of them.

They didn’t know what would be too far for each other. Katniss wasn’t sure if Peeta loved her just as much as before the hijacking. She wasn’t sure if her kisses would send him into an episode, but so far nothing hinted at it.

When Katniss pulled back she licked her lips and smiled at him, staring into his impossibly blue eyes.

“Well, let’s go.”

The frequent walks to the lake in the summer helped Peeta with his prosthetic. He was able to walk the whole way without  
stopping now.

They stared at the lake and Katniss started stripping her shirt off.

Peeta’s eyes widened and he stared at her. He was used to this, but over the past months, with a healthy diet, Katniss started to gain more curves and Peeta couldn’t take his eyes off of her.

“You just going to stare at me?” Katniss said teasingly.

She had stripped down to her bra and shorts and she started moving back into the water.

Peeta smirked at her. “I wouldn’t mind doing it.”

Katniss laughed at him and jumped into the water. Peeta stripped off his shirt and his jeans. He ran into the water and tried to find Katniss.

Under the water, Peeta couldn’t see her. He looked around and he started to panic. When he came back to the surface he didn’t see her.

“Katniss? Katniss?!”

Peeta searched around for Katniss and panic started to rise in him. He knew that Katniss was an expert swimmer compared to him, but anything could’ve happened. Katniss hopped up on Peeta’s back and he let out a yelp

“Katniss! Are you crazy?! You scared me half to death,” he said loudly.

“Oh..I’m sorry Peeta,” she said in a sincere voice.

Death wasn’t something that Katniss or Peeta could play with as a joke. It was too frequent and could happen at any moment to them.

Katniss hopped off his back and floated in front of him. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

“I was just messing around. I’m sorry that I scared you,” she said in a sad voice.

He smiled at her and stroked her cheek with his fingers.

“It’s okay. I was just scared that you had drowned and I wouldn’t have been able to save you, but I’m glad we’re able to be free and do what we want now. No one controlling us. I love it. We’re finally free.”

Katniss stared up into his eyes, mesmerized at how he could make his words come out so easily. Katniss didn’t respond to Peeta, but instead she reached up and kissed him.

The kiss was unlike any other that they had shared. At first the kiss started like any others they shared after the war. Their lips would move along each other, but nothing more. Instead Katniss probed Peeta’s mouth with her tongue. Peeta was shocked but was eager to allow access.

It reminded them of the beach. Hunger.

Peeta ran his hands over Katniss’ back and she wrapped her legs around his hips. Katniss could feel the same thing she felt on the train. Peeta’s hardness pressing against her.

The kiss got more heated and Katniss could feel warmness spreading throughout her body. She wanted to pull him closer, but there was no more space between them

When Katniss heard footsteps she pulled back from Peeta. She looked around and saw a harmless deer. She let out a sigh of relief because it could’ve been a wolf. Or even worse.

A person.

She turned back to Peeta and saw him breathing heavily. She chuckled and pecked his lips again.

“C'mon Peeta. Let’s go home.”

 

Winter

 

Winter had been the changing point in their relationship. Ever since that day at the lake, their relationship became closer. Kisses became longer, they were more open, and everything Katniss and Peeta wanted from each other, they got it.

Except one thing.

Katniss was sure that eventually the day would come. The day where she finally gave everything she had to Peeta. That night, Katniss had waken from a nightmare.

Peeta was walking away, leaving her forever. He screamed at her how she was a mutt and how every person she touched, she killed. When screams filled the air, Peeta held her closely and murmured that it was okay.

“Shh…shhh. It was just a dream Katniss.”

“You were leaving me. Please don’t leave me Peeta!” she cried out desperately. “I’ll do anything! Just please…don’t leave me.”

Peeta held her closer and shook his head.

“I’m not leaving Katniss. I would never do that.”

Katniss sniffled a few times and stared at him. The next question shocked Peeta, but his answer would always the same.

“Do you love me?”

“Yes. I always have, and I always will,” he said without hesiation.

Katniss nodded and smiled at Peeta. She pulled him close to where he could hear how fast her heart was beating.

“I love you too.”

Peeta had suspcions that she did have feelings for him over the past year, but he wasn’t sure if her feelings went as far as love. She loved him, and he loved her.

They leaned towards each other at the same time, and when their lips meet, both of them knew it was time.

Katniss knew it would happen, but when it finally did, she couldn’t be any happier. It was filled with “oops” and awkward laughs, but neither of them would have it any other way.

When they were done they couldn’t stop staring in each other’s eyes. Katniss had finally confessed her love to him, but Peeta had to ask one more time.

“You love me, real or not real.”

Katniss smiled at him and she replied in the only way she ever would.

“Real.”

 

Spring, 15 years later.

 

“Those were the best days Peeta. I knew that I wanted to be with you. It seemed like I was revived..”

Peeta smiles and holds her hand. “Those were the best days for me, when you allowed me in your life.”

Katniss and Peeta watch as their two children play in the meadow. They chase after each other and when Rye finally catches Willow, they both fall into a patch of dandelions.

Katniss smiles as she sees them play. She never wanted kids, but they are the best things in her life, of course other than Peeta.

It’s Katniss’ favorite season. The season where she finally started to live again when Peeta returned. Katniss buries her face in Peeta’s shoulder and he wraps an arm around her.

“This is how it started Peeta. The day you came back. It was my favorite season and it was one of the happiest days of my life. I felt like I could officially start living my life.. You’re my dandelion in the spring, and I love you so much.”

Peeta didn’t know where this was coming from, but anytime Katniss could form her words it sounded like a beautiful melody, the sweetest things he could hear.

“I love you too, Katniss. Always.”

Now as Willow and Rye hop on their parents and shower them with kisses, Katniss realizes something.

No matter how many seasons and years will go by, their love will be the same.


End file.
